


Working Title

by Hacereadsenochian (Grannahreadsenochian)



Series: Poor Working Title [1]
Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: AU, Angst, F/M, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Love is in the Air, Romance, and, galore, mm fluff, mm mama, non-canon, semi-au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-11
Updated: 2017-04-16
Packaged: 2018-10-02 20:44:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 4,258
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10226969
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grannahreadsenochian/pseuds/Hacereadsenochian
Summary: Being hospitalized by the Ripper may have seemed rather unfortunate in the beginning, but soon enough everyone realizes it was a blessing in disguise- and that Hotch is in love.A series of one-shots describing the circumstances that led Hotch to this conclusion.-In Progress-





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> At the beginning of this story, Haley has been divorced and out of the picture for a long time. She didn't fight for custody, because that wouldn't be convenient. She left Aaron high and dry, with a kid to take care of. 
> 
> You, on the other hand, have quite a history with Aaron. A professional history of course. You were a Captain in the army and worked with the BAU on several cases where the military was brought in. You became close with the whole team and they all love you and you're a badass prosecutor now and that's where we begin this story.
> 
> Abbreviations:  
> Y/N - Your Name  
> L/N - Last Name

It hadn't been an especially long day. Getting up and going to the office early hadn't been as burdensome as usual. You had a refreshingly cooperative client, and the case wasn't as dark as lawsuits often were when the military was involved. You'd left behind being an officer, and finally having the power to persecute the men you used to salute- was oh so satisfying. 

You went straight to the kitchen and dropped a few ice cubes into a glass, then filled it at the tap and knocked it back like you hadn't had a drink of water all day. You came up for breath and stood at the sink, in the dark, letting your shoulders relax and your head empty. You started stepping out of your heels just as your phone rang. What's Jeffrey forgotten this time, you wondered, closing your eyes. One day that aide's forgetfulness would have consequences. 

You sat your glass down heavily on the marble counter and answered your phone without bothering to look at the ID. 

"L/N." You answered shortly. "What is it." 

"Y/N. It's Aaron Hotchner." 

"Agent Hotchner," you said quickly, straightening your posture even though he wasn't there to see you. "It's been-" You trailed off, trying to remember just how long it had been since your last case with BAU. 

"Please, it's just Aaron." The man said. "And it's been months, I know." Something was wrong. He sounded tired, like always. His voice was calm and weary, but under that there was a tone of... it was either worry or pain. You knew his job gave him plenty of reason for it to be both. 

"What's wrong?" 

The line was quiet. 

"Aaron?" No, the line wasn't quiet, not entirely. In the space left by his silence you heard the faintest of beeps.

"Are you in a hospital?" 

"... Prince William's." 

It took a second for that to sink in. 

"What happened." You asked, leaning against the counter. "Are you okay?" 

"I'm fine." 

He didn't sound fine, but you chose not to push it. 

"What's wrong then." 

"I know this is... highly irregular but... " more hesitation. This was actually quite worrying. 

"If you need me to consult on a case you know you only need to ask." You said, frowning. 

"No, it's nothing like that." 

"Well spit it out Aaron, I can take it." 

You pictured him looking out a window, forehead all creased, eyebrows furrowed, his mouth a thin line. Would his room have windows, you wondered. 

"I presume you're all up to speed on the reaper?" 

Your stomach dropped. 

"You reopened the case?" 

"I didn't have a choice. He forced my hand." 

"And he put you in the hospital." 

"Mm." 

You scoffed and shook your head. 

"Mm?" You repeated. "Alright. What's on your mind?" 

"Well you can imagine this is hard for me to ask." You closed your eyes and nodded. Yes, yes you imagined it well. "And you know I wouldn't ask this of you unless I-" You saw him close his eyes then, the pained expression never leaving his face. You heard him sigh. "The fact of the matter is, Haley has been out of the picture for a while now and I'm obviously not in good shape to be a father right now and... Jack's been staying at the hospital with me-" Jack. Of course it was about his son. Nothing else would make him fret as much as not being able to take care of his son. "-But the room's only so big, you know?" 

"I understand," you said gently. "What do you need me to do?" 

"I can't keep him safe. Not in the state I'm in." Oh how it must pain him. Worse than whatever the reaper did to put him in the hospital in the first place. "I need someone who I can count on to keep him safe and you were the first person I thought of, strangely enough." Yes, strange indeed. "If it's not too inconvenient- and I know it is, but if it's not too much of a problem would you mind giving him a place to stay? Just for a couple days." 

You knew the question was coming but it still gave you pause. You'd have to take some time off. But it was thursday anyway, take tomorrow of and it'd be a three day weekend.

"Y/N?"

"Yeah." You said. "Sure, I can do that."

"It'll only be a day or two."

"Okay."

"Just until I'm released."

"As long as you need, Aaron." You meant it as you said it.

"Thank you." The relief in his voice was... overwhelming. "He's sleeping on my legs right now- all tuckered out from running through the halls." You smiled.

"Do you want me to come get him now?"

"Only if you want to. You can wait 'till morning."

"I'll come over now, it's only a fifteen minute drive." You said. "You can get a good rest. One less night of worry."

"Thank you, Y/N. Really."

You thought about the BAU team. How they were all so tight-knit and supportive of each other. How deep their loyalty and love was to each other. You'd never felt any of that, not as an officer, surrounded by men and rivals, nor in prosecution where again, everyone was trying to beat everyone else. Working with the BAU that one time had given you a glimpse of what that love and loyalty could feel like. And working with Hotch... left you wanting more. Maybe this was him inviting you in.

"Of course." You told him. "Anything."


	2. Chapter 2

Aaron was sleeping. He looked exactly how you'd imagined him when you were on the phone. Quiet, calm, in pain. One arm was around Jack's sleeping form, the other rested on the bed, trailing IVs and wires and bandaids from tests. All you got wrong was the window. He didn't get a window. There was a nice wall for him to stare at.

"Captain l/n?"

You turned at the sound of a man's voice.

"Agent Morgan!" You greeted him. "Long time no see. And it's not Captain anymore."

"Well congratulations." Morgan shook your hand. "How's life down at the courthouse treating you?"

"It's a nice change. How've you been?"

"We've all been better." Morgan admitted, jutting his chin towards his sleeping team leader.

"Don't tell me you've been keeping watch?"

Morgan smiled.

"Garcia asked me to come by. She worries. But I guess she didn't need to." He gave you a little look.

"Hotch asked me to take Jack in for a couple of days. Kid shouldn't be sleeping in a hospital." You waited for Morgan to say that Hotch should've asked the team for help. Instead, he nodded, looking pleased.

"He's a good kid. I don't think he'll give you much trouble."

"He better not." You muttered, probably joking.

"Well at least that's one less thing the team'll have to worry about. Now we can really focus on finding this son of a bitch."

"Got any leads?" You asked.

"Not a damn thing."

"If you need anything, you know how to reach me." You said. Morgan looked thoughtful.

"Thank you." He said. And then,"I'm glad Hotch brought you in on this."

He said goodbye and walked away.

\--- 

"Who were you talking to?"

You turned to see Hotch, staring drowsily at you.

"Just a nurse." You lied.

"Was it JJ?" He asked, guessing anyway. "She won't stop checking on me."

"Your team cares about you." You said, coming to his side. "How burdensome."

Hotch grunted.

He was so quiet for a minute you thought he might have fallen asleep.

"Don't look at me that way, Y/N." He murmured. "It's not that bad."

"Your team seems to think it is."

Hotch didn't answer that.

"Hey. Buddy." He was waking Jack, gently. "Wake up."

The boy opened his eyes almost immediately.

"What's wrong daddy?"

"Nothing's wrong, bud. Y/N's here. You remember her?"

Jack shook his head.

"Yes you do, I told you you're gonna stay with her for a few days, remember? She's an old friend of Daddy's. Remember she's gonna take care of you?"  
Jack nodded solemnly.

"I remember." He looked sadly at his father. "I don't want to leave you."

"Come on." Hotch said. "You'll have fun with her."

"I have fun here."

Hotch smiled sadly.

"No you don't." He said softly. He pulled Jack into a hug and kissed the top of his head.

"She's gonna keep you safe." He whispered. And then loudly he added, "She's gonna make you pancakes for breakfast, and grilled cheese for lunch, and macaroni for dinner,-"

"She's gonna make you cereal for breakfast." You interrupted his teasing. "And broccoli for dinner."

"Is it the marshmallow cereal?" Jack asked.

You hesitated. The marshmallow cereal?

"Of course it is." Hotch answered, looking at you. "That's all lawyers eat for breakfast. I should know."

You shook your head at him, biting back a smile.

"Let's go to the store and get you some cereal, Jack." You suggested. "And... macaroni."

"Can I come back?" Jack asked, his lower lip quivering.

"We'll visit him tomorrow." You promised. "Come on."

"Y/N."

You stopped in the doorway and looked back at Hotch.

"Thank you again."

You smiled and led Jack out, holding his hand tight.


	3. Chapter 3

"knock knock." You stood in Hotch's doorway. It'd been two days since you'd taken Jack into your care. 

 

Hotch's face lit up as soon as his eyes fell on Jack. "Hey Buddy!" He said with a smile. He wrapped his arms around his son and smiled at you. "Y/N." He greeted you. "How's he doing?"

 

"He's doing great." You said. 

 

"I made you a picture daddy." Jack blurted out excitedly. 

 

"Wow!" Aaron exclaimed, taking the picture gently. "Is that you?" He asked, pointing to a mass of scribbles and color. 

 

Jack nodded, beaming. "Which one is you daddy?" 

 

"Is that me?" Hotch guessed, pointing at the other scribbles. 

 

Jack bounced happily on the bed, nodding.

 

"Settle down there kid." You said. "Your dad's still fragile." 

 

"No, I'm alright Y/N." Hotch said. "The pain's gotten better." 

 

You gave him a little smile. 

 

"Where should we put the picture?" You asked. "Do you want to put it on the wall over here?" 

 

"Yeah!" Jack jumped off the bed and ran over to the wall. 

 

"Let me see if I can track down some scotch tape." 

 

 

"Where's Jack?" You asked when you came back to an empty room. 

 

"I think he's doing his rounds." Aaron said with a little smile. "He's made some fast friends here." 

 

"I'm sure he has." 

 

"How is he adjusting? To staying with you?" 

 

"He seems to be doing fine." You said, walking over and taping up Jack's artwork. "He sees it as a sleepover." You paused. "He seems more concerned with the fact that you're alone here." 

 

"I'm not really alone." Hotch said with the faintest of smiles. "You know that. JJ and Garcia won't stop checking up on me." 

 

"They're gonna have to get back to their jobs eventually." You said. "You'll get your peace and quiet." 

 

"I won't have peace until this is over." Hotch murmured.

 

"Jack is safe, Hotch. I won't let Foyet touch him." 

 

"I know." 

 

"... And I'm sure Haley will be fine too." 

 

"No one's safe until the reaper is put away, forever." Hotch said vehemently. 

 

"And I have no doubt he will be." You said, frowning. "You'll catch him, Hotch." 

 

He didn't answer. 

 

"Hotch, You'll get him." 

 

He finally looked at you. 

 

"I know we will." He breathed. 

 

You sighed and looked away. 

 

"I spoke with Haley." Hotch said, breaking the silence. You looked up. 

"About?"

"Jack." 

"Aaron-" 

"I know after I fought for custody of Jack she didn't want anything to do with me but I thought she had a right to know what happened. I thought she has the right to a choice. She is his mother, after all."

"And?" You pressed. 

"She's agreed to take care of Jack. Until I can get out of here and be his dad again."

You sat at the chair next to the bed and put your feet up on the metal bed frame. 

"Oh..." You sighed. "You don't want to do that." You said finally. 

"What do you mean?" Hotch looked quizzically at you.

"Haley walked away from you and Jack years ago." You said, really thinking out loud. "You really want to bring her back into your life? What do you think will happen? She'll come back to you?" You kept your voice calm, trying to seem as detached and logical as possible. 

"No," Hotch said, "of course I don't think that. But he's her son. She has a right to be the one to take care of him, now that I can't." 

You were silent. 

"Y/N?" Hotch frowned. "What's wrong?"

You shrugged. 

"I... I really don't mind taking care of Jack." You said. But it was more than that- Jack had wormed himself into a special place in your heart, where there hadn't even been room for a kid before. And when he wedged himself into your life, you got your foot in his life, and these nighttime visits in the hospital had begun to mean something to you.

"Well- for the time being, yes." Hotch stammered. "But I have to think long term. I'm not going to recover from this overnight." 

"You'll be back in your house after a week or two." You said. "They're not going to keep you here for your entire recovery." 

"Y/N, he needs a mother." Hotch said not unkindly. "It's not like I'll be back to normal as soon as I get home. I won't be able to take him to school, or play with him, or give him everything he needs. It'll be months until I'm really back."

"You're his dad. I think he cares that you're hurting right now and he understands that you'll need time to recover." 

"And you think he'll want to wait?" 

You frowned. 

"I think you're the one giving yourself an ultimatum, not him." 

Hotch sighed. 

"Maybe it's just time. He's been motherless for two years now, and I haven't been home a lot. He spends more time in daycare than his own house. Maybe it's time he has a mother who can take care of him." 

"Hotch, Jack's fine." You argued. "He doesn't need a mother, he doesn't need Haley, he just wants you." You twisted around in your seat to point at the drawing hanging on the wall. "That's you and him in that picture, not you him and Haley."

Hotch glanced at the picture, then looked down at his hands. 

"You bring Haley back into this mess and you may not like what happens." You warned softly. "You may lose both of them." 

Hotch was quiet, looking at his lap. 

"You don't want to lose your son, Aaron." 

You stood and looked at the picture on the wall, your arms crossed. It was just colors and scribbles but there were two discernible figures- Jack and his father. There was no room for a mother. There was no room for Haley. 

"It's a big wall." You mused. "We're gonna need to make more pictures." 

"Y/N-." 

"You're gonna need to stop thanking me."


	4. Chapter 4

\-- I know it's been a while since I've posted. School is kicking my butt, as I'm sure it's kicking everyone's butts. Just bear with me, and thanks for sticking around. Things are about to get pretty painful for our favorite profiler. >:) --

 

She’s standing next to the bed when you walk in. 

It’s not that you weren’t expecting her. Aaron had tried to tell Haley that she didn’t need to take Jack away, but she didn’t listen. She wanted her little boy. It only took her five years to realize it. 

A part of you suspects that the only reason she’s pushing for this is because of what happened to Aaron. Even though Jack hadn’t been close to harm when Foyet attacked, Haley had always been ruled by her emotions, as far as you could tell. Her emotions made her leave her family, when things got tough. Now her emotions are making her take Jack away from his father. She doesn’t believe Aaron can take care of Jack, see. She thinks she can keep him safe from an infamous serial killer, better than Aaron and his team of crack BAU agents can. 

It’s ridiculous. And it’s never felt more ridiculous than now. 

She’s standing next to the bed, stiff as a board, arms crossed. She doesn’t look like a mother. She looks like an ex-wife who’s got no idea what she’s supposed to do. She looks about as happy as Aaron, who turns his head away when you walk in. His body language, and hers, scream how tense this transition is for everyone. 

“Hello Haley,” You say, breaking the silence. She gives you a tight smile. Then you say, “Hey Aaron,” and her smile fades. 

Haley watches Jack run over to Aaron’s side and give him a big hug. She’s so unnatural, so stiff. She has no clue how to act. She has no idea who Jack is, what he’s like. 

“Jack, this is Haley,” Hotch introduces his son to his mother. “Haley, this is Jack.” 

“Hi.” Haley smiles at Jack. Her face is lined and stressed. You can’t help but think she going to have to do a lot better than “hi” and a strained smile to win Jack over. 

“And Haley, this is Y/N.” Hotch’s voice is soft when he introduces you. 

Haley uncrosses her arms to shake hands, but you “miss” the little social clue and move over to the side of the bed where Jack is. 

“Y/N was so kind as to take in Jack for the past couple of days.” Hotch says in that same quiet voice. 

“Aaron helped me with many a case.” You say, looking down at him. “It was the least I could do.”

“It was much more than that.” Aaron says, looking you in the eye. “You did so much that I could never have asked of… anyone.” 

“Well, thank you.” Haley says, trying to inject herself into the space between you and Aaron. “It means a lot that you’ve been lending Aaron a hand.” 

You finally look her in the eye, gazing down just slightly. She’s trying not to shrink back. 

“Of course.” You say. “I told Aaron, anything he needs. I’m just a phone call away.” 

The unspoken meaning of your words hangs thick in the air. 

“...Do you mind if we have some time alone?” Haley asks finally, breaking the silence. “Jack and I have a lot of bonding to make up.” 

“Of course.” You reach down and ruffle Jack’s hair. “See you around, okay Jack?”

“Will you come visit me?” Jack asks sadly. 

“You can visit me. How about that?” 

“Okay.” 

You give him a reassuring smile. And a real one, not one of those fake smiles that adults give. Kids can always tell when smiles are fake. 

“Hang in there Jack. Aaron.”


	5. Chapter 5

It felt strange, walking up to the hospital room without a little boy hanging onto your hand. 

It felt lonely, looking around the empty hall with one door left wide open. Open, welcoming, waiting for visitors. 

It felt wrong being there when his own son wasn’t with you. His ex-wife, who he still loved, wouldn’t bring his only child, who still loved him. Dearly. Desperately.

You didn’t knock. You stood in the doorway. 

“I know you’re not asleep.” 

Hotch didn’t open his eyes. 

“Jack isn’t here, Y/N.” He mumbled. “Haley already took him.” 

“I know.” There was a single chair sitting against the wall. Metal and plastic, that hospital green color. You dragged it over to the bed and dropped down with a sigh. “I came to see you, Aaron.”

He turned his head to look at you. 

“What? Why?”

You hesitated, lips half parted. Eyes searching his face, his searching yours. 

“I don’t have a good answer for that.” You finally admitted, glancing away. “I just… thought I should be here tonight.” 

Aaron managed a little smile. 

“I’m alright, Y/N.” He murmured. “I’m just tired.”

“Okay.” You smiled back. “Well I’m not tired yet so- I’ll just sit here for a little while.” 

“You’re not going to leave.” 

“No.” 

“Okay.” 

Nothing in you thought that Aaron was actually going to go back to sleep. You put your feet up on the metal bedframe and leaned back in the chair, glancing at him every few minutes. His eyes were shut but his face looked pained. 

You realized that he’d opened his eyes and was staring at the ceiling. Just staring. 

“Hotch?” You leaned forward a bit. Was he okay?

“Haley’s staying at the Tower Hotel.” 

You closed your book. 

“Aaron-”

“I'm in a hospital and she's staying two blocks away from me.” 

You… didn't know what to say to that. 

He still loved this woman. After everything she did to him. 

“You were right.” Aaron said. 

“What?” 

“Haley's trying to use this to get custody of Jack.” 

Your heart dropped. 

“She's going to take him away from me.” 

You sat, frozen. Nothing could make this better. No matter how sorry you were.

But he was so sad, so... Broken. 

Physically and emotionally. 

What was it you told Haley? That you would do anything for Aaron. 

You would fix this. 

You cleared your throat. 

“The first night Jack stayed with me you told him I was going to take care of him.” 

Hotch squeezed his eyes shut. 

“That night, he asked me who was going to take care of you. I told him he didn't have to worry about that. You don't have to either.” 

You put your hand on his. 

“Hang in there Hotch. I'll take care of this.”


	6. Chapter 6

\--Insert "A few years later" meme. I feel like it's been forever since I updated and I still feel bad. I'm sure I don't have to explain to you guys. I'm stuck in the vicious cycle of work, school, more work, more school, and on top of it all,  _life._ Never fear though, I've still got places I want to go with this fic and we will get to the end, no matter how long it takes. I just hope you're there with me :) --

 

 

It was time for Aaron to go home. The rest of his healing could be done in his own bed, not the sterile comfort of the hospital gurney. 

 

Of course everyone at the BAU had offered to pick him up, but then when the time came they were all in kansas, or something. So you’d stopped by last night on your way home from work to update Aaron on the ‘sitch. 

 

You’d been doing a lot of that, actually. Stopping by the Hospital on your way home. After that night after Haley took Jack, it became a regular thing for you to visit Aaron. He didn’t have many other visitors. Haley had only brought Jack to visit Aaron once or twice. You used to bring him weekly, but Haley couldn’t even scrape together enough heart to let her son see his dad. But you weren’t even a little bit bitter. You were a lot bit bitter. 

 

Aaron was dressed and standing at the wall when you walked in. He was taking down all the pictures Jack had drawn for him- there were a lot. It turned out it wasn’t as big a wall as you had thought. On the two occasions Haley brought Jack in, he’d brought half a dozen pictures as well. 

 

Now Aaron was placing them neatly in a folder, looking over each one before placing it away. 

 

He looked up at you and smiled. 

 

“So they let you play hooky,” he said, in reference to your boss and the long hours you usually had to work. 

 

“That’s the nice thing about being a lawyer now. I choose my clients, I choose my hours.” You walked over and picked up the picture on the top of the pile. There were three figures in the middle of the picture. Jack and Aaron. And the third figure had to be Haley. He'd accepted her back into his life so quickly. So easily.

“Family picture?” 

 

Aaron glanced at the paper. 

 

“It’s not Haley.” 

 

“What?” 

 

“It’s not Haley in the picture.” 

 

You stared at Aaron, your mind not processing what he was saying. He smiled. 

 

“It’s you in the picture,” he said, shuffling through a handful of other drawings. “He brought it over on his last visit but he wouldn’t tell me who it was with Haley in the room.” He put the last pictures in the folder and looked down at you. “She left to get some coffee and that was when he told me.”

 

“Oh.” You tried to remain neutral. “That’s so sweet.” 

 

Hotch was biting back a sly little grin.

 

“Y/N?”

 

“What?” 

 

“You gonna put it back in the pile?”

 

A sheepish grin cracked your face. You turned away to hide it. It was _you _in the picture.__

____

____

 

“You know, it’s yours if you want it.” Aaron said, his smile coming through in his voice. You looked up at him. 

 

“What? No. It’s- no.” You shoved it into the pile quickly. 

 

“Y/N,” Aaron chuckled. “It’s alright. You can be sentimental.” 

 

“Don’t you patronize me.” You grumped. “Come on, are you gonna walk out of here or should I find a wheelchair?”


End file.
